


Camping Under The Stars By: Me (feat. Mental Illness and Procrastination)

by Jelly8lien



Category: Mother 2: Gyiyg no Gyakushuu | EarthBound
Genre: Anxiety, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Camping, Fluff, Friendship, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Going to Hell, M/M, My First Work in This Fandom, Please Kill Me, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-14
Updated: 2019-10-14
Packaged: 2020-12-15 23:01:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21026171
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jelly8lien/pseuds/Jelly8lien
Summary: Its in the title, stars, camping, gay. I had many nights to write and then didn't so sue me. Its my first work so thats how you know im dying. yaaaay. anyhow enjoy, also write more Jeff and Tony cowards.





	Camping Under The Stars By: Me (feat. Mental Illness and Procrastination)

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to hell. If you also go to Tumblr, then welcome to hell number 2 bitch.

. “Come on, come on hurry up,” Tony urged Jeff on, “before they see us!” It was completely dark out, save for the distance flickering of the Tessie Watchers’ campfires. Jeff could barely see the sturdy metal gates he was being hoisted over.  
“Believe me, I’m trying my best.” He grunted as he finally was lifted over the gates, hitting the freezing, snowy ground with a thump. “I hope you have a plan to get you on the other side.”  
“Of course! I wouldn’t have suggested the idea if I didn’t think it through.” Tony pulled out a rope from his fluffy coat and waved it around, as if to prove a point to Jeff. Perhaps it was to rub something in Jeff’s face, but if it was, he didn’t know what. Tony threw the rope over the barrier, anticipating it would be caught. It was, and with a bit of struggle, Tony climbed the fence. As he neared his dismount, he felt his hand slip.  
“Whoa WHOA-“ He braced himself, envisioning a face full of grass and cold condensation. To his surprise, he landed on a soft, warm bed of cotton.  
“Careful now, don’t hurt yourself.” Tony cracked open his eyes to see Jeff’s smiling face, nose and cheeks red from the frigid temperature. His arms wrapped around Tony and held him close, as if he was the most precious thing in the whole world. Jeff sweet smile sifted into something more smug, and _oh, oh dear I’m staring._  
“Oh, um-“  
“Look!” Jeff exclaimed, ogling at the inky sky, “Look at the sky!” Tony stepped back and gazed above him, pitch-black save for the glittering stars. It was stunning. He was so caught up in its wonder, he could barely register Jeff tugging his arm, “Lets go, the view might be better over here!”  
As they traveled down the rough, snowy ledges, Tony caught the sounds of the wilderness and the wind. It was silent. The usual goats and dogs that roamed around could be heard snoozing, save for the occasional, echoing cry of an owl. The pine trees were covered with dainty snow, shining and sparkling in the moonlight.  
It reminds him when Jeff ranted about forest cicadas, and how rare they were. That warm May afternoon they spent the entire recess trying to find one. They eventually did, and sat together listening to its gentle tune. Afterwards they exhausted plenty of their time attempting to fish the pine needles out of their clothes, the memory still makes Tony chuckle.  
Tony’s paused his run for a moment, he was so focused on getting to Lake Tess, that he hadn’t noticed that Jeff wasn’t shaking. Ever since he came back, Jeff would get anxious when going out this far from the school. The animal calls, the shortness of breath, it all brought back terrible memories for both of them. For a while, Jeff was reluctant to go outside. Tony couldn’t blame him, they already spent so many nights staying up together, afraid to go back to sleep in fear of having a nightmare. Sometimes, even the mere creak of the dorm door, or a sudden voice would make him jump. It troubled Tony, Jeff was already anxious before, locking himself in the school bathroom before or after an oral presentation. Though now he simply refused to move, even if he wanted to. Despite all that, Jeff was leading the way, with no hesitation. A determined look on his face, unaffected by his anxiety.  
What made him act like this, Tony wasn’t sure. Perhaps it was the rush of sneaking out at such a late hour. Nevertheless, Tony and Jeff sped down to the Tessie Watcher’s campsite. They were surprisingly willing to lend one of their tents. Jeff assumed it was because they thought they owed him a favor, though it wasn’t that much trouble; at least not enough to let obviously escaped students borrow one of their tents. The thought made Jeff chuckle, if he told Tony that, he would say to stop berating himself. He wondered if Tony knew just how much he valued him. He knew that if he didn’t bring it up now, he might never.  
After being told where they were staying, the pair seated themselves on opposite logs near a campfire. They chatted far into the night, and for once didn’t mind if it accounted to nothing; all that really mattered was that they were together. The water in the lake was still, the only sounds that could be heard besides their voices, was the crackling of the fire. Jeff was always afraid of talking too much, going on and on until he would realized he was rambling. It never bothered Tony. He was content listening to Jeff talk about how real pearl necklaces have knots in-between each pearl, and how when dramatic writers say that the necklace flew into pieces, that it only meant that she was wearing cheap beads on a string.  
“Jeff? Can you tell me about the Lost Underworld again?” Tony asked, cocking his head and smiling.  
“Why? Haven’t I told you the same story a thousand times?” Jeff inquired as he threw another stick into the fire, “Why do you always want to listen to my stories…”  
Tony wished Jeff could see himself the way he did, if only for a second. Then he could see the way his eyes lit up every time he exclaimed that his attack hit, or a little smile of satisfaction when he explained a weapon he has fixed. Tony could think of many reasons why he would want to hear the story again, though his mouth could not form the words. _It’s all the emotion_ he told himself, _thats why I cant get this out._ Instead of answering, he simply stared at the ground, trying to force his mouth open. Jeff peered away from the sky to study Tony. He had seemed to understood, he was better at reading silence then words anyway.  
Jeff had always cursed his inability to read people, it was inconvenient. He felt silly when he couldn’t grasp conversation, like a small child learning how to walk and speak. He would always bring his confusion to Tony, and then he didn’t feel silly. It felt natural to struggle. He did often forget he was still quite young, it’s hard to remember that when you know what blood smells like. The taste of it in your mouth like a penny, as your vision become more and more blurry. With that thought, he had decided to recite his tale while his memories were resurfaced.  
“Well it was very humid,” he started, “grassy plains stretched out far, trees I had never seen before towering over my head.” Jeff put his hand to his lip and closed his eyes, trying to remember the feeling once more. The sweat, tears, pain, and oh god the walking. So much walking. “We had just left the local Tendas which had left the original tribe, after resting and buying new equipment, the team was in high spirits.” It was hard that night to get to sleep though, he admitted the next morning. He had nothing to fix, yet he found his insomnia had other plans. Paula had always insisted that he stop drinking coffee, and Ness repeatedly offered to go on night jogs with him when he also couldn’t sleep. Poo had taught him various meditation techniques, and he found himself joining Poo whenever he woke up early to train. That night though, nothing seemed to work. “We were making our way towards Fire Spring, the last sanctuary location, when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. A Chomposaur. Normally this would excite me greatly, as I was always eager to write down my discoveries.” And he often was ecstatic about every new thing they accoutered, to the point of getting distracted mid-battle. He couldn’t help it though! The Mr. Saturns, the Tendas, and especially the Pyramids. Fascinating. “Though the site of the monstrous beast only filled me with panic. When it saw us, it immediately started to hurtle towards us. I could barely get the words out in order to alarm my companions.” He left out a little laugh, “I still remember Ness’s face.” Jeff would joke about it after they returned to Saturn Valley, and Ness would retort with the fact that Jeff’s scream nearly murdered his ear-drums.  
Tony listened intently as Jeff told the tale. Sure he’s heard it before, but that didn’t make it any less wonderful to him. It was nice to hear that he made new friends, Jeff always struggled with that. Thats why he was a little reluctant to let Jeff go, he feared he would feel lonely and trapped. Though it the end, it was Tony that felt that way. When Jeff returned, many tears were shed, and hugs shared. It did surprise them both how much they missed each other, how much they were accustomed to each other’s presence. It was weird when the other wasn’t there, like a piece of them had disappeared.  
“We ducked for cover in the Cave to the Past, in fear we would be caught off guard by the unfamiliar opponent.”  
“Wait a minute,” Tony interrupted, “couldn’t the Chomposaur just have shoved his head into the entrance of the cave?” Jeff’s head shot up and stared at Tony.  
“Well um, I’ve never thought of that, but it’s good it didn’t! I don’t know what we would’ve done in that case. Though, do you think it could’ve even fit its head inside?” Tony thought about it for a moment, and then answered with a shrug. The two burst into giggles.  
“Hey, what made you so confident back there?” Tony asked, after a pause he continued, “I mean, I thought you would’ve said no, and we would’ve just gone to the roof instead. Not that that would have been less of a good time, the point of it would have been the same either way.” Tony looked to the ground, waiting for a response.  
“It was you, you didn’t know that?” Tony’s peeked at Jeff, trying to understand what he meant. “I mean, I knew how excited you were for this trip, I didn’t want to ruin it. I knew we could’ve gone to the roof, or just stayed inside, but I didn’t want that. I wanted you to be happy.” Jeff pulled his jacket up, trying to conceal the light dusting of pink on his cheeks. He had hoped the winter winds would be a good enough reason as to why the tips of his ears were cotton candy pink. Jeff felt the warm blanket the Tessie Watchers had given them, and a warm body pushing against his side.  
“You looked cold, didn’t want you to get sick.” Tony swung his arm around Jeff, covering him with the blanket, “It would be bad if you caught a cold. Here, get closer.” Jeff was certain that the two couldn’t possibly get any closer, they were already smashed together on one log. Though it wasn’t like he was going to deny his request, so he scooted over. “It was very nice of you to do that, though if you start to feel your anxiety getting bad, tell me and we can go back okay?” Jeff nodded, thankful to have someone like Tony. While he was thinking about it, he might as well tell him.  
“I really like you.”  
Well that wasn’t how he wanted to start this, but it’s too late now.  
“You really mean a lot to me, more then anyone. I mean, no one has ever been for me as much as you have, and I uh well.” _Really graceful there Jeffery, you are the pinnacle of intelligence at this very moment._  
“It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me everything right now. I know we have a habit of never saying things, so we’ve tried to say what’s on our mind more often. And we have, it’s become part of the routine, but you don’t have to force it. Let’s just take our time. Oh Tony, he really did have a heart of gold didn’t he? Always so patient, so kind, so loving. Love._ What a scary word,_ he thought, _yet now it doesn’t seem so bad._ They’ve been dancing around it for so long, normally it would seem time to talk it through. To tell everything and finally embrace this strange and wondrous feeling. And while it frustrated Jeff to follow this slow pace, it was for the best. It wasn’t as if they were hiding their feelings, they were just finding the right words to say.  
Tony’s head was perched on Jeff’s shoulder, his eyes closed, “You gettin’ sleepy?” Jeff asked.  
“What? Oh, no. I can stay up all night.” His sentence was punctuated with a yawn, “You didn’t hear that.” They both smiled, fully content being next to each other. It was difficult to convince Tony to come to the tent, but he managed.  
They crawled inside the beige tent together. Despite being protected form the snow, it was still freezing. There were two sleeping bags, and a dim light coming from a lone lantern. They wiggled their way into their respective beds, the smell of meat and smoke permeated the space.  
“Don’t worry about waking up early, I’ll do that.” It was expected that in order not to be caught, they had to wake up early in order to sneak back in time, so as to not be seen entering the school. Jeff mumbled a thank you. “Um, can I sleep with you tonight?”  
“We are sleeping together, we have been almost our entire lives Tony.” Jeff replied.  
“Shush, you know what I mean.” Tony huffed, “I don’t need your sass.” Jeff rolled over to face Tony, grinning ear to ear. After nodding yes, Tony stepped out of his bag, and shimmied his way into Jeff’s, “Move over, look how much room you have!”  
“Well excuuuuuse me princess.” Tony stuck his tongue out in response, the playfulness of their relationship was something both of them hoped would never leave. Tony layed down next to Jeff, wrapping his arm around him and pulling him close. “Weren’t you were just complaining about the amount of room?”  
“Shut up.” Jeff would have made another comment, but Tony placed a tiny kiss on the back of his neck, silencing him. Cozy. The thought of the frigid outdoors far from both of their minds. Tony buried his face into to Jeff’s hair, smelling the fire and forest instead of the school’s shampoo. Their legs entangled together, determined to have as much of each other as possible. Sleepiness enveloped them as they embraced, and the worries of the future seemed silly. They would be fine, as long as they had each other.

**Author's Note:**

> wow you made it through, either that or you went straight (hah straight) to the bottom to tell me how much I sucked. well even if you read it the whole way through you can still tell me that. I hope you've eaten waffles and have had a good day. if you are reading this in the morning, I hope your coffee helps you not to snap necks.


End file.
